At first
the diner patrons Edwards tells the call about dismiss it as a hoax, but
after some quick (and remarkably convenient) calls, the group goes into
panic mode and word begins to slowly spread throughout the city.
The plot of the film, Edwards’ desperate attempt to get the girl he’s fallen
in love with that day (Mare Winningham with awful hair) to come with him
on a plane to Antarctica, is strictly sub-standard, but the tone created
by the film manages to overcome these boundries.
The cast is full of reliable character actors, Tangerine Dream produces, for once, a score that perfectly matches the frantic atmosphere, and the slow descent of the city’s residents into barbarism keeps the viewer interested while maintaining its low budget. There are plenty of flaws, sure--parts push the suspension of disbelief wayyyy beyond the normal lines--but Miracle Mile is an interesting and unique enough film to be worth a look.
Where Miracle Mile ends with the bombs hitting, Panic in Year Zero begins. Ray Milland, who also directed, stars as a father taking his family out for a leisurely drive to Grandma’s house when the city they’ve come from suddenly goes up in smoke. This time the threat is atomic, not nuclear, but the effect is the same--mass hysteria.
This time, however, the panic takes central focus as Milland and his crew (including Jean Hagen and Frankie Avalon) quickly attempt to do everything they need in order to survive, buying canned food, gasoline, weapons and maps, shoving aside anyone who happens to get in their way. Unlike Miracle Mile, which makes the mistake of having a heart at the center of its plot, Panic in Year Zero seems intent of showing humanity at its worst: Selfish, brutal, savage and angry.
If Panic in Year Zero seems a wee bit dated, it’s due only to the technological ignorance at the time (and perhaps the presence of Frankie Avalon, the weakest spot in the film), not becuase of the reluctance of the filmmakers to go as dark as they wished. 1954’s Invasion, U.S.A. covers the same turf with less effect, splitting the narrative among several characters and winding things up with an “It’s only a dream” ending, so if all this apocalypse action leaves you wanting more, try 1983’s Testament, a slow-moving but extremely powerful account of one family’s struggle to stay together after a nuclear holocaust.